


heart beats like fire in the wind

by seraphina_snape



Category: Check Please! (Webcomic)
Genre: Fake/Pretend Relationship, First Kiss, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-07-09
Updated: 2016-07-09
Packaged: 2018-07-22 13:02:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,725
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7440292
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/seraphina_snape/pseuds/seraphina_snape
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>
  <i>“I will owe you, Dex,” Nursey blurted out, clearly desperate. “I will owe you so much.”</i>
</p><p> </p><p>  <i>Dex looked around for Linda to excuse himself because having his fellow d-man’s back off the ice was part of the deal, but she was nowhere to be seen.</i></p><p> </p><p>  <i>“Fine.” Dex sighed. “What do you need me to do?”</i></p><p> </p><p>  <i>“Just… act boyfriendly.”</i></p><p> </p><p>(In which Nursey needs a fake boyfriend for an evening and Dex happens to be it.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	heart beats like fire in the wind

**Author's Note:**

> My first Dex/Nursey fic (apart from a snippet here and there)! But I saw the "fake relationship" prompt at omgcp-tropechallenge and my first thought was Dex/Nursey. 
> 
> The title is a line from the song I was listening to while writing it (Riot Child's _Never enough_ ) - the song doesn't fit the story, but the line _heart beats like fire in the wind_ makes me think of Dex.

“Can I get you another drink?” Dex half-shouted over the music. 

Linda smiled at him and nodded, making Dex smile in return. Linda was in three of his classes, but they hadn’t really talked before this party. It was definitely Dex’ fault: he divided his time between hockey and school, training to improve his game, and studying to keep his scholarship. Without the scholarship money he wouldn’t be able to afford Samwell, and a lot of that money came from the team. Dex felt he owed it to the team, the school and himself to do his absolute best. And if that included not talking to cute girls in order to stay focused on school, then that’s what he did.

But Samwell had won the first four games of the year and his average was better than ever. If there ever was a time when he could afford a little distraction, this was it. 

Still smiling, Dex reached for Linda’s empty cup. But before his hand could close around it - and maybe brush against Linda’s - someone slammed into him from behind. Dex’ first instinct was to shake them off, whoever it was, but he recognized Nursey’s aftershave/laundry detergent combo, and the way he’d slammed into Dex was a classic Nursey celly behavior. 

“What the hell, Nursey?” Dex said out of the corner of his mouth, turning towards Nursey and away from Linda.

“I need your help,” Nursey said, his lips close to Dex’ ear. It was his game voice: serious, sincere, and the least _chill_ he ever sounded.

“Can you get off me first?” Dex shrugged, trying to get Nursey to loosen his hold.

“Not really,” Nursey confessed. “I kinda need that guy over there to think we’re dating.”

Dex followed Nursey’s line of sight. “The one with the shiny shirt?”

Nursey dropped his forehead on Dex' shoulder. “No, the other one.”

Dex swallowed. The other one was a literal giant. Probably taller than even Holster, with shoulders just as broad.

“Whoa!”

“I know! He plays basketball, likes the new Marvel movies and his instagram is full of pictures of his dog. We went on like one date a few months ago and it was terrible. But he kept calling me every few weeks to ask if I wanted to go out again. He wasn’t creepy about it but it was so obnoxious that I invented a boyfriend to get him off my back. And now he’s here!”

“Unlike your imaginary boyfriend.” 

“I will owe you, Dex,” Nursey blurted out, clearly desperate. “I will owe you so much.”

Dex looked around for Linda to excuse himself because having his fellow d-man’s back off the ice was part of the deal, but she was nowhere to be seen.

“Fine.” Dex sighed. “What do you need me to do?”

“Just… act boyfriendly.”

Dex rolled his eyes. “Well, I was going to get another drink.” 

Nursey nodded. “Sure, let’s go.” 

Without further ado, he grabbed Dex’ hand and started to make a path into the other room. Dex stumbled a little, not used to being dragged around by his hand, and nearly crashed into Nursey’s back. 

“Slow down,” he said into Nursey’s ear. “I’m not breaking my neck for a beer.”

Nursey abruptly slowed his steps and Dex inadvertently ended up pressing front to back against Nursey. It was easier not to lose Nursey in the crowd if they stuck close together, so Dex put his hands on Nursey’s hips and steered him towards the drinks table. It had the added benefit of letting him help Nursey avoid crashing into anyone or anything on the way.

Dex filled up his cup and then gestured at the table, silently asking what Nursey wanted. 

Nursey frowned. "I thought Shitty bought that microbrew I suggested?"

Dex nodded. Our of the corner of his eye he could see the large basketball player edging into the room and looking around. With a quiet sigh, he reached for Nursey hand and tugged him closer. "It's hidden in the fridge." He nodded towards the kitchen. "Behind the salad."

Holding hands, they made their way into the kitchen, exchanging a glance when their large shadow followed them. 

"I really don't want to fight that guy," Dex said as soon as they were in the kitchen and out of the guy's line of sight. "His hands are the size of dinner plates!"

"He's not a fighter. I swear he's like an overgrown puppy," Nursey said, sticking his head in the fridge to dig out his beer. "He's just... persistent. Like he doesn't want to believe I'm not interested."

"Persistent? It's called creepy, idiot."

Nursey opened a bottle and chugged down half of it, not even pausing to taste any of it. Dex rolled his eyes. Typical. First he made a big deal out of needing this particular type of beer and now he didn't even savor it.

Dex swallowed down the rest of his beer and threw the empty cup towards the sink, thinking that maybe he should try one of Nursey's beers next. He leaned back against the fridge and watched Nursey for a moment, wondering if tall, sporty and kind of douchey was Nursey's type, or if his date with the basketball player had been set up by one of his weird friends. 

Nursey took another sip of his beer and caught Dex's eye. He glanced to the side and back, and when Dex did the same he saw the basketball player lurking unsubtly right outside the kitchen like the world's most obvious stalker. Maybe Nursey didn't need a pretend boyfriend as much as he needed a restraining order and a can of pepper spray on his key ring.

"Hey," Nursey said, dragging Dex out of his thoughts. Dex startled a little because Nursey was right there in his space and he hadn't even noticed. "Don't punch me, yeah?"

Before Dex could say anything, Nursey pushed closer, crowding him back against the fridge. Dex had no idea where Nursey's beer bottle had disappeared to, but his hands were definitely free to touch Dex. He put his left hand on Dex' waist, right where his shirt met his jeans and used the other to cradle the back of Dex' neck, gently pulling him into a kiss. 

Dex gasped a little when their lips met, staring at the long, perfect lashes on Nursey's closed eyes. Nursey was kissing him. Derek Nurse, his sometimes friend, sometimes pain in the ass, was leaning against him while their lips touched. 

As far as Dex could see, his options were to push Nursey away or to kiss him back, and his plan for the night had included some kind of intimate physical contact anyway. Sure, he'd had his sights set on Linda, but Nursey was right here and not a bad kisser. 

Not a bad kisser at all.

Dex relaxed back against the fridge and closed his eyes, his tongue sweeping out to meet Nursey's halfway. Nursey made a small sound of surprise and tightened his hold on Dex' waist, his fingers slipping under the fabric of Dex' t-shirt. Not to be outdone, Dex slid one of his arms around Nursey's middle and settled it on top of his ass while he raised the other one to his head to run his fingers through that thick dark hair. Experimentally, Dex tightened his fingers in Nursey's hair and pulled, gently. 

Nursey moaned and deepened the kiss. 

Dex forgot about the party and the basketball douche and the fact that he didn't always like Nursey. He had no idea how long they'd been kissing when someone loudly cleared their throat right next to them and lightly tipped him on the shoulder. 

"Hi, sorry, so it's extremely awkward that I have to disturb you and your boyfriend," the girl said when Dex blinked down at her, "but I put my meds in here earlier for safekeeping, so if you could, um, just let me grab them real quick that would be great."

"It's fine," Dex mumbled, not sure she could hear him over the music. 

Nursey abruptly let go of him and stepped back, allowing Dex to step aside so the girl could get at the fridge. She looked a little familiar, but Dex couldn't quite pinpoint where he knew her from. 

She gave them a little wave when she got her stuff and grinned. "As you were," she said, winking.

Dex looked at Nursey and caught his eye, resulting in one of the most awkward moments of his life to date. Because he had just spend ten? fifteen? maybe thirty? minutes making out with Nursey. What was worse: he kind of wanted to do it some more.

On the upside, at least Nursey's stalker seemed to have disappeared. 

Dex waited another beat, but the urge to kiss Nursey was still strong, so he made a fist and punched Nursey in the arm. Hard enough that he would feel it but gently enough that it wouldn't actually hurt him. 

"That’s for thinking I’d punch a guy for kissing me. How many more times, Nursey? I am _not_ homophobic!" 

And with that, Dex stormed out of the kitchen and out of the Haus. 

Nursey had to be probably _the_ best kisser out of everyone he’d ever kissed. Most of them had been girls, but his first kiss ever had been with a boy, and over the years he'd kissed one or two or six more. None of them could hold a candle to Nursey and it was messing with Dex' head. He needed the privacy of his own dorm to deal with the fact that making out with Nursey had been pretty fucking amazing, without having Nursey's eyes and his face and his perfect mouth in his direct line of sight. 

#

Since he left the party relatively early, Dex didn't have a hangover to deal with, but of course he ran into Linda at the commons that morning. 

"Linda! Oh, um. Good morning."

"Hey, Will."

"Hi." Dex shifted his empty tray to one hand and ran the other one through his hair, hoping his face wasn't as red as it felt. "So, um, about last night--"

"Oh, please don't!" Linda bit her lip and winced a little. "I feel so embarrassed, Will! I thought you were flirting with me, and then your boyfriend showed up and I’m so sorry! You two are adorable together. Your bickering is so cute." She winked. "And he looks gorgeous!"

Dex rubbed the back of his neck, not sure what to say to that. Would Linda even believe him if he told her about the basketball giant and his creepy crush on Nursey? 

"Janice said you guys didn't even notice her when she went to grab her meds." Linda sighed. "I wish I had someone like that."

"You'll find someone," Dex assured her, neatly putting Linda in the "friend" category in his mind. Trying to explain the fake boyfriend (and the very real make out session) would be futile. But just because his chances of a date with Linda had sunk to literally nil didn't mean he couldn't be friends with her. 

"Just... don't give up. Nursey and I didn't even like each other when we first met, and now we're..." Dex trailed off, leaving Linda's imagination to fill in the blanks. The truth was, he had no idea what to do about Nursey. Nursey was annoying and infuriating, but he was also a good hockey player, a loyal teammate and - at this point - a friend. They didn't always get along, but Dex would drop his gloves on the ice in a heartbeat if anyone went after Nursey.

So what if they'd kissed? Did it really change anything? Considering the fact that Dex had jerked off (twice!) the night before while thinking about Nursey's hands on his body and Nursey's lips on his, the answer would have to be yes. But did Dex _want_ things to change?

He didn't know, so he said goodbye to Linda, dumped his tray and headed towards the Haus. Sooner or later, Nursey would show up there, and maybe it would help Dex make up his mind if he knew what Nursey thought about the whole thing.

#

Dex stole a few cookies from Bitty and then retreated to the living room, setting up his laptop on the coffee table. The Haus was quieter than usual, leading Dex to think that Ransom and Holster were probably out. He spent an hour cleaning up his lecture notes and cross-referencing things so studying would be easier. He was completely immersed in the reading for his Basic Algorithms class when Nursey ambled in and sat down next to him on the couch. 

Dex glanced up and found Nursey staring at him, his eyes dark and intent and entirely unreadable. 

"Hey, Dex." Nursey turned so he saw sideways on the couch. "Howzit?"

Dex let out a sharp breath. "Well, Linda - the girl I was flirting with last night when you so rudely interrupted us? She thinks my boyfriend and I are really _cute!_ together. She probably told all of her friends about it too. I’m not gonna find anyone to give me the time of day for the rest of the semester at least. So thank you, for making sure this will be a sad and sexless semester for me."

Dex winced internally. That wasn't at all what he'd wanted to say. But then Nursey had shown up with his sleep-mussed hair and his light stubble and his casual _howzit_ like nothing had even happened between them.

"Hmm," Nursey said, tilting his head a little. "It doesn’t have to be."

Dex blinked. "What?"

Nursey frowned and Dex almost laughed. Maybe he wasn't the only one whose thoughts got a little scrambled in the presence of the other. 

"Um. I mean."

Dex licked his lips and turned sideways, facing Nursey. "Yes?"

"I just meant that--we could--if you want--" Nursey shook his head and sat up a little straighter. He put his hand on Dex’ thigh and leaned in, slowly enough that Dex could easily pull away if that was what he wanted. 

Dex didn't move, waiting for Nursey to close the distance between them. 

Just like the night before, kissing Nursey was good. Better than good, really; it was fucking amazing. Nursey smelled good, his hair felt great under Dex' fingers and their mouths just seemed to fit together perfectly. 

"Damn," Nursey said when he pulled away, gasping for breath. "You’re such a good kisser."

Dex laughed. "I was thinking the same thing."

Nursey smirked and Dex was torn between chirping him and kissing him again. Before he could do either, Nursey raised his hand and ran his fingers over Dex's nose. 

"So, what do you think?" Nursey asked, trailing his fingers down Dex' face and neck. "You, me, kissing." His gaze dropped down to Dex’ lips and then down to his chest. His fingers followed suit, skimming over Dex' nipple and just past his crotch before his hand settled back on Dex' thigh, a little higher than before. "Maybe more than kissing."

When Nursey asked like that, the answer was obvious, really. Dex took a steadying breath and put his hand on top of Nursey's. "Just… shut up and kiss me again."

#

Ransom walked into the living room and stopped dead. "Whoa!"

"Bro, what?" Holster leaned a little closer and peered over Ransom's shoulder. " _Damn!_ I owe Lardo twenty bucks!"

"You do?"

Holster shrugged. "She swore she saw those two kissing last night and I said no way because she was already pretty sloshed and this is Dex and Nursey AKA They Who Fight All The Damn Time. So when she said to put my money where my mouth was, I slapped down a twenty and told her I'd enjoy getting my Sunday Night Pizza with her money." He sighed and gestured at the couch where Dex and Nursey were sleeping. "And now this! There goes my pizza."

Ransom took in the slightly rumpled look of Dex and Nursey, the way Nursey was curled around Dex, the hickey on Dex' neck and Dex' hand, tucked into the waistband of Nursey's pants. There weren't many way to interpret the sight as platonic. He gave Holster's back a conciliatory slap. 

"It's okay, bro. I'll share my pizza with you."

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you for reading! ♥


End file.
